Artist Colleen Doran has been talking about a secret graphic novel project she’s been working on for over a year, and it’s finally been announced: MANGAMAN, written by Barry Lyga, author of The Adventures of Fanboy and Gothgirl, and Boy Toy The tale is described as a “metafictive” tale of a character from a manga who falls through a “rip” into the real world and falls in love with a real girl. Doran talks about the project here:

This book is completed and in house at publisher Houghton Mifflin and will be for sale in November! I’m so excited, I dance and squee! That’s hard to do while you type!

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I’m a little mixed on Barry Lyga’s writing, although I like what he’s trying to do. When this was first announced as a “secret project” that he and Colleen Doran were doing, I knew I’d be picking it up regardless of what it was.

But reading about the premise & looking at the preview art, I am more excited by it than I thought I’d be. November certainly feels like a long way off.

I’ve been having multiple conflicting internal views that I’m still trying to work out. When I first heard this piece of news, I was initially impressed that someone was doing a story similar to mine involving culture clash between East/West art styles. It’s not quite as ambitious as I’d hoped, but it showed promise, since it’d portray the odd man out who’s constantly picked on in High School cliques. Not to mention the hurdles involved in trying to impress the American girl. No fans of wimpy-main protagonists here!

Now, after seeing the sample pictures from the preview animation (I hate those since I can’t read the comics at my own pace), I’m somehow rather ambivalent. Upon hearing the description, I thought it’d be a great satrical work on how what passes for normal in Manga circles simply wouldn’t get a free pass in an American setting. Now, it seems more like a collection of stereotypical fish-out-of-water cliches where the dweeb eventually gets the girl.

I don’t know enough about the writer’s past works to comment on them, but the general theme throughout most of the titles seems offputting to me. I’d like to hear more people’s opinions on whether Barry Lyga’s writing is any good. Then again, Anthony Horowitz’s stuff keeps getting drawn into comic adaptions, and HIS stuff is no great shakes either.

As someone who loves analyzing the whole manga / comics fandom divide, namely tearing it the hell down, I’m loving this concept. The manga guy definitely has a kinda of shojo style to it. Kinda surprised they didn’t go for more an Archie look for the American side, as that’s kinda the vestigial niche in America compared to Japan’s flourishing shojo market. Though that works too. Guess it’s more Doran’s usual style. Very interesting book.